Romantic comedy is perhaps the most abused genre in modern movies, with examples ranging from crass to obnoxious ("There's Something About Mary," "The Sweetest Thing") and from silly to lightweight ("How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days," "Maid in Manhattan").
So it's nice to note that the pairing of Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant is more on the . . . dare I say it . . . Doris Day-Rock Hudson level. That is to say, they have real chemistry and some witty dialogue on their side.
You can find out for yourself with the arrival of "Two Weeks Notice" on DVD this week.
"Two Weeks Notice" (Warner, 2002, rated PG-13, $27.98). Aside from a couple of ill-advised vulgar gags, this is a surprisingly well-made farce in the romantic screwball-comedy mode. It won't make you forget "Pillow Talk," but it's much more fun than most.
Bullock plays an idealistic attorney who, against her better instincts, goes to work for self-centered corporate mogul Grant, with the promise that he won't demolish a local community center. But when he uses her for little more than a fashion adviser, she tries to quit. And, of course, they are falling for each other and trying to ignore it.
What makes the film work is the funny banter and the stars' smart delivery. Both are also pretty funny in the audio commentary, along with writer/first-time director Marc Lawrence — although too often they just giggle and praise each other or toss out friendly barbs, instead of commenting on the film.
There are also two deleted scenes — including an alternate ending that's pretty good — and bloopers. But to see the latter, you must again watch the entire film, this time keeping your eye out for little heart-shaped icons; an annoying conceit. And since the bloopers are mostly just the stars cracking up, it's hardly worth it. (And for her sit-down interview in the making-of documentary, what happened to Bullock's lips?!?)
Extras: Separate widescreen and full-screen editions, audio commentary, outtakes, making-of documentaries, deleted scenes, trailer, etc.
"Walk Don't Run" (Columbia, 1966, not rated, $24.95). Cary Grant's last film was this charming and funny remake of "The More the Merrier." That film was a World War II comedy about the Washington, D.C., housing shortage; here, the story is set against the backdrop of the Tokyo Olympics.
When Grant arrives in Tokyo two days early for a business conference and can't find a hotel room because of the Olympics, he charms his way into the apartment of reluctant Samantha Eggar, who had been seeking a roommate.
Later, he allows American Olympics competitor Jim Hutton to sublet his half. Then, Grant tries to help the two get together, despite the British Eggar being engaged to a stuffy Englishman . . . or maybe because of it.
Hutton is quite amusing (a funny running gag is that he will never reveal the event in which he is competing), but Grant is hysterical as the bemused business executive, using his patented slow stares and wide-eyed doubletakes to full effect. (Although he's as much an observer here as a participant.)
Look for George Takei, who played Sulu in the original "Star Trek," as a cop who tries to straighten things out near the end.
Grant retired after this movie, partly as a result of the fact that when he was nearly 60, the studios continued to pair him with such stars as Audrey Hepburn in "Charade" and Doris Day in "That Touch of Mink"; he didn't want to continue playing romantic leads opposite much-younger women (Grant was 25 years older than Hepburn, and 20 years older than Day).
That doesn't stop stars like Clint Eastwood or Harrison Ford today, but Grant had the integrity to hang up his hat, and he never made another film after this one — despite constant offers over the next 20 years of his life.
When people say they don't make stars like him anymore, they mean it in more ways than one.
Extras: Widescreen and full-screen options, trailers, etc.
E-MAIL: hicks@desnews.com